Aaron Rodgers said he feels ready for the new NFL season with the New York Jets after enduring "one of the hardest training camps in the last eight years" of his career.
Quarterback Rodgers, who is returning from an Achilles injury that forced him to miss much of 2023, was told by head coach Robert Saleh to expect a tough preseason.
And speaking to reporters after practice on Tuesday, the 40-year-old insisted that Saleh had lived up to his word.
"I would say the camp is much harder this year and maybe the hardest in the last seven or eight of my career," Rodgers said.
According to Saleh, the Jets have completed 300 more practice reps than they had at this point last season as they look to end their longest ever playoff drought.
The 45-year-old is under increasing pressure to deliver this time around after totalling a record of 18-33 in his first three seasons in charge.
While Rodgers said there are different philosophies on the benefits and risks of a rigorous training camp, the four-time MVP said he personally enjoyed the experience.
"Some of the older players are enjoying the - to steal a coaching word - the 'callus' part of training camp, where you're grinding," Rodgers said.
"Some people believe that, although it puts more strain on you in training camp, it actually gets you more ready to play when the season starts.
"And some people believe the opposite. You know how it goes. Whatever teams are having success, people kind of look at their schedule and go, 'Let's do that.'"
The Jets conclude their preseason against the New York Giants, having won their previous such fixtures against the Washington Commanders and Carolina Panthers.
Rodgers has not featured during the preseason, and it is expected he will also miss out against the Giants, although Saleh has yet to confirm his plans for the 40-year-old.
They open the new season against the San Francisco 49ers, and Rodgers said he feels ready for the new campaign after putting in extra work during the training camp.
"I feel good about where I am with my body and what I've put together," he said.
"I feel like I've done different things throughout camp as far as the rollouts, roll out and pulling up, getting out of the pocket and making plays, going back across my body, pump-faking and extending plays and getting some yards. I feel like I've done a lot."
Cowboys quarterback Prescott reportedly expected to miss multiple weeks with hamstring injury
The path to the play-offs is now even tougher for the Dallas Cowboys.
Quarterback Dak Prescott will reportedly miss several weeks with a hamstring injury sustained in Sunday's 27-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
The severity of the injury was determined following an MRI, and reported Monday from multiple media outlets.
Prescott is planning to get a second opinion, and the Cowboys have not decided if they will place him on injured reserve, which would keep him on the sideline a minimum of four games.
Prescott, who signed a record-breaking, $240million contract hours before this season's opener, suffered the injury late in the third quarter.
He was replaced by Cooper Rush, and the seven-year backup will get the start this Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Rush completed 13-of-25 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons, but couldn't rally Dallas all the way back.
The Cowboys ended up losing their third straight game to drop to 3-5, which matches the total number of losses the team had each of the last three seasons.
They now sit in third place in the NFC East, 3 1/2 games behind the division-leading Washington Commanders.
Rush has found some success as a fill-in starter for the Cowboys, though, the 30-year-old hasn't been forced into the starting role since 2022.
In six career starts for Dallas, he's gone 5-1 with 1,281 passing yards with seven touchdowns, four interceptions and an 83.6 rating.
There is some good news for the Cowboys, though, as star defensive end Micah Parsons is likely to return this Sunday after missing the last four games with a high-ankle sprain.
Cowboys quarterback Prescott expected to miss multiple weeks with hamstring injury
The path to the play-offs is now even tougher for the Dallas Cowboys.
Quarterback Dak Prescott will reportedly miss several weeks with a hamstring injury sustained in Sunday's 27-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
The severity of the injury was determined Monday following an MRI.
Prescott is planning to get a second opinion, and the Cowboys have not decided if they will place him on injured reserve, which would keep him on the sideline a minimum of four games.
Prescott, who signed a record-breaking, $240million contract hours before this season's opener, suffered the injury late in the third quarter.
He was replaced by Cooper Rush, and the seven-year backup will get the start this Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Rush completed 13-of-25 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons, but couldn't rally Dallas all the way back.
The Cowboys ended up losing their third straight game to drop to 3-5, which matches the total number of losses the team had each of the last three seasons.
They now sit in third place in the NFC East, 3 1/2 games behind the division-leading Washington Commanders.
Rush has found some success as a fill-in starter for the Cowboys, though, the 30-year-old hasn't been forced into the starting role since 2022.
In six career starts for Dallas, he's gone 5-1 with 1,281 passing yards with seven touchdowns, four interceptions and an 83.6 rating.
There is some good news for the Cowboys, though, as star defensive end Micah Parsons is likely to return this Sunday after missing the last four games with a high-ankle sprain.
Stumbling Saints fire head coach Allen
The New Orleans Saints fired head coach Dennis Allen on Monday, one day after the team’s losing streak reached seven games with a 23-22 defeat to the lowly Carolina Panthers.
New Orleans got off to an unexpected strong start to the 2024 season by outscoring its first two opponents 91-29 in a pair of victories.
The Saints lost their next two games by just a combined five points, but then it really started to unravel for the team.
New Orleans’ next four defeats all came by 13 points or more, and on Sunday, the Panthers pulled out a 23-22 win over the Saints after Carolina entered the meeting with a 1-7 record.
Allen was promoted from New Orleans' defensive coordinator to head coach after the 2021 season, and the Saints posted an 18-25 record under him with no play-off appearances.
The Saints (2-7) are expected to name special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi as interim head coach ahead of their Week 10 visit from the NFC South-leading Atlanta Falcons (6-3).
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